Momof4crazytocruise

19 hours ago, BunnyHutt said:

Dec 2020 Anthem has Key available now in the cruise planner... for the bargain price of $37.99. 

Sadly, people are probably paying that... I guess I would rather put the $1600 it would cost my family of 6 towards an upgraded cabin! At $20/day I considered it for my Enchantment cruise, but then decided it wasn't worth it because the perks on that ship just aren't there. 

The Enchantment Facebook page is all abuzz with word that they are cancelling several cruises for Enchantment next March and April. Possible dry dock? Something else? My February cruise *appears* to be safe, just curious if y'all have heard anything?

If it's not too late (60 days after booking) - why not transfer the reservation to another agent (MEI is great) who doesn't charge a fee, and then you get the service you were looking for, AND you're only out that $35. Just a thought. 

I have no specific preference, but I have family members who complain (significantly) about the vibrations from the engines in the aft. 

We brought our combo battery operated/plug sound machine and had no issue. Worst case scenario, bring a battery operated one and extra batteries. Or, just load an app on your phone.

We had so much fun with our kids at the Blue Waters Beach Club. The water was shallow, perfect for kids, and I brought some collapsible sand buckets and some shovels, and it was awesome. Food was pretty okay, drinks were great. The beach was clean, and they kept the vendors from harassing us. We loved it. 

The only time we've been charged more than the cap was for wine that was like $5 or more than the cap, and when we wanted a specialty glass (or pineapple). Every cocktail we ordered was covered, and every glass of wine. So unless you're planning on drinking $30/glass wine, or $70/glass scotch, don't stress too much about it. (Of course, a buck or 2 with the sea pass card to the bartender may "solve" that problem too). 

My husband is pushing back a little, but I know he will love it if I just tell him we're doing it. First cruise without our kids, which we'd never be able to do this if they were with us. It's our 10th Anniversary, so I am thinking I may just book it and apologize later. LOL.

Trying to decide if I can justify $85/person for dinner. What are your experiences? Have you ever been offered a discounted one after boarding?

If I saw you doing that, I might be more brave to order that 2nd entree that I really wanted to try but felt too self-conscious about ordering. You do you! You paid for a vacation that food is a big part of - and don't worry about what anybody else "thinks". Shoot! I'd probably want to pull a chair and chat with you! 

Do I need to bring my own stainless steal or silicone straw so I can get my drink on? I remember reading somewhere that RCCL doesn't have plastic straws anymore?

Enchantment of the Seas 9/25-9/30 - our 10th Anniversary cruise - FIRST without kids! WOOOOOOOOOO

I live right across the street from NASA (I work there), so I know the area pretty well! #IsurvivedHarvey. Feel free to pick my brain as well!

11 hours ago, kittysoul said:

@kadmgs  Oh this is awesome!!  Thanks so much for all of this golden info!  I will write these things into my little book that I take with me and for certain try some of those restaurants!  Having never been to Texas, I definitely want to try the BBQ there..and the tex mex!     Can you tell me more about where the 'Bay Ara Blvd' is located, like which neighborhood to search on the hotel search engines...   If you know a couple specifically that would help.. like midrange ..maybe a holiday inn or mariott in that general area?  In a city that huge, those hotel search engines get so confusing, trying to nail down a certain area (for me anyway! lol)   Thanks so much for your advise/ help!

Bay Area Blvd is one of the main drags down here - NASA RD 1 is the other. The mall is there, with great restaurants, west of I-45. East of I-45 has restaurants and hotels, all of the (nice) LaQuinta, Marriott type. Search "Webster TX" to get the best read on hotels in that area. There is a very nice Courtyard Marriott and Hilton down near NASA that most of my colleagues and family stay at that they all like (search Nassau Bay for those hotels). It is within walking distance of the Space Center and some restaurants.

I think you can also put in a landmark - like Johnson Space Center, and that would get you in the right area.

I definitely think you'd have more luck asking the TA to honor their current promotion than getting RC to match it. It doesn't hurt to ask before transferring. I was able to secure a pretty sweet incentive that I didn't even know existed when I transferred over mine to MEI - and they offered it up, said I qualified, and applied it to my booking. 

14 hours ago, CarlaB said:

If it's gonna cost us $1000 extra to be romantic then I think we'll just have to wait til we get back home 

That's what the nursery is for  It's only costs $6/hr... LOL. If it was us, we'd save the $1000. Honestly, after dealing with our kids all day on a cruise ship... ain't nobody got time for that! LOL

Cancel your current Deluxe Beverage Package and re-buy it with the credit applied.

Galveston is really only about 35-40 minutes from Hobby airport. If you're going to come in that early, why not stay near NASA Johnson Space Center and do the tour there at Space Center Houston? Plenty of reasonable hotels around, and easy trip via Uber or Lyft to the port. 

I believe "Fancy Dress" in the UK means costume party. LOL. 

So it says *price reflected includes the discount* -and the "discount" is off the onboard price (what you would pay if you waited to purchase it on board) - so they are showing you the price you will actually pay for each package (i.e. it's not pay $65 for the first, $32.50 for the 2nd, it's pay $48.75 for each package) . It's not further discounted off the price your seeing (and it does very clearly state "price reflected includes the discount"). Additionally, you will have to pay the 18% gratuity at the time of purchase, which can make it look like your discount went away. 

Not RCL - but a little funny - I guess the British have a different interpretation of "Fancy Dress" - man wears clown outfit to formal night, sparks major brawl.

“He said one witness "explained to staff that things kicked off when another passenger appeared dressed as a clown. This upset one of their party because they'd specifically booked a cruise with no fancy dress. It led to a violent confrontation."

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-49137520?ns_campaign=bbc_south_today&ns_linkname=english_regions&ns_source=facebook&fbclid=IwAR25nGm3L4EPhBuEVBK2U1sqNseTyKa6ikKrz6ImHnlwaplK6NMk9bFPJlk

So this is COOL. 

Not RCL - but what neat technology!

https://gcaptain.com/photos-boka-vanguard-loads-carnival-cruise-ship-for-dry-docking/?fbclid=IwAR0wxdh-5CoDG08ohmoFjow_eCaM3w7Wf73P7P5ppM3X4glvHlHClw3gQl4

We enjoyed Blue Waters Beach Club. It was clean, chairs right on the water, and they kept the vendors from harassing you. The food was a buffet under a pavilion - and we thought it was pretty good. The drinks were never empty, and the kids had a ball on the beach. Not much snorkeling, and the water is really shallow,  which was nice for the kids. Bring towels from the ship, sunscreen, and an open mind! It is pretty private, and everybody there is probably a cruise passenger. 

Edited to add: I brought beach toys for the kids. I found collapsible buckets on Walmart.com that collapse flat, and packed shovels and all sorts of toys. Was fun.

I've brought NASA stickers or mission pins (I work at Johnson Space Center) - small, compact, and usually well received! 

You can actually scale how much OBC you use towards things during the checkout process in the Cruise Planner. So if daughter #1 wants to prepurchase the internet package, she can slide the scale to use $25 of the $50 when she goes to check out on the cruise planner (she can also cancel her current purchase, then repurchase using this option) That would leave $25 for daughter #2 to use the leftover $25 towards whatever she wants. On board doesn't mean you *have* to spend it on board. You can spend it in the cruise planner ahead of time, and split it how you want. 

For our family of 6 - we take:

2 - 29in roller suitcases

1 - carry on tote bag with swimsuits and diapers for the day (and whatever else we think we'll need before the bags get there)

1 mesh duffel with beach toys, snorkel gear, and an extra pack of diapers

I'm a very efficient packer (plus my kids are still pretty small and their clothes fit easier!) 

Minus the duffel, this is how I pack for every vacation. However, in the winter, I plan to do laundry somewhere because the winter clothes take more room!